Dr_Chronos

This partly works, it seems rebrickable can make some of the images with parts in non-available colors but can't for others. For instance, it can make a picture for a 1 x 2 mixel socket in black but not bright-light-blue. Haha I certainly will! Really though I am a big non-purist so I like to use parts from clone brands, and they have many parts that either do not exist in lego or are in non-available colors. This would be helpful for me because there's not a lot I can do with the usual online tools for part management/wanted lists. So this would help me when I'm on the lookout for specific parts when I browse, making orders on services like webrick, and also lets me start creating a better catalog of what I own. I thought that it might have been possible to do all this from stud.io because the model info screen generates thumbnails of all parts (that you can't interact with) regardless of whether they are custom or in unavailable colors.

Thank you for the idea, this solution works for standard parts that are colored in their available colors. Unfortunately it does not work if the part is colored in something not available. Still, this is helpful in doing part of the work.

Hi, Lately I have been creating some large mocs in Stud.io, so large that managing the parts list becomes a pain. Somehow I would like to be able to export the parts list spreadsheet with the images of the parts in the correct color. Something like the instructions bill of materials page, but as an actual spreadsheet so I can search and edit. If there's another software that I should check out that can do this, I would love to know. The fastest workaround I've been able to do is manually pasting images from the bill of materials page into the spreadsheet, and that can take up to 3 hours. Another wrinkle is that these builds use custom parts I created. I can always add them to the spreadsheet after if that's the only way to make it work but it would be awesome if I can do it straight from Stud.io.

I know there are many lego-compatible 3rd party motors with many spec comparisons, but i almost never see the sound level which is what I want to know most. What are some options for motors if noise is my biggest concern?

Dragons have become a Lego staple huh? I wanted to make a dragon based on its most iconic feature: shooting fire from its maw! The core of the function was built around the spiral fire station pole piece, the idea being that when pushed through the guiding hole it would be forced both push and turn the extendable fire plume. The pole is quite long and distance for the user required to push would have made the model have an almost completely open back. To make the distance on the user easier, I attached the pole to a sliding gear rack and put gears on the trigger to turn the gear rack holding the pole forward as it was being pushed. Its not a perfect solution, the firepole rod the mechanism is built on has only bar connections. Too much force or getting stuck will cause it to seperate from the trigger. This is especially problem when pulling the flame back. The fully extended fire weighs down on the firepole rod which is slightly bendable by design, making it harder to pull back through the hole. Still though, I think the effect was captured pretty well. I would love to hear any ideas for improvements or other things to try.

My plan is to have the fire rotate as it telescopes out of the mouth. I thought about a couple ways to do it, but the simplest way I think would be to use the twisty pole. I'm pretty attached to it. Everything would be inside the dragon when it is not shooting fire. The flames would be inside the head while the pole and mechanism would be in the body. I want it to be manual powered but I'm thinking about making it a windup. For that I would use a mini turntable gear powered by some windup motor or mechanism to turn the fire + pole, and the pole would then force the telescoping fire to extend. That way is a bit more complicated though so I'm not leaning that way.

Please Excuse the hasty mock up, I'm trying to build a fire-spewing dragon. I'm concerned with improving how the twisty rod is pushed through. The best solution to me seemed to be a scissor lift. I figure that it will need to depend on the structure to travel straight, but I'm wondering how to have both sides of the lift move at the same time and if there is a better way to apply force that will give more torque. I am not good at designing scissor lifts so I would appreciate any pointers. Here's a crude sketch for what I'm trying to do. Ideally I'd like the function to activate by squeezing the sides of the body. Other than the above method where some beams rotate to activate it, I thought about having the each of the sides push the opposite side's scissor lift beams out so that it compresses. But I don't know how I could do that without making it difficult to secure it or make both sides move equally.

My entry in the Makuta contest. The main idea for this creation is that somehow Makuta has captured the Toa's masks and is using his dark magic to wield all their power at once. Each arm has a gear in the back that can spin the masks while the hands stay still, as if they were orbiting around the hand like elemental fireballs which you can see here: https://www.flickr.c...tetaken-public/ For the build I wanted to go for a more wizardly, regal, and more royal look than Makuta is traditionally known for while still keeping familiar elements. I'm particularly proud of how the chest and head turned out. This guy was built together VERY last minute. I had made a parts order weeks before, but since I didn't expect them to come in before the contest was over I hadn't had much built when they showed up a few days ago. Really I could have never finished him without the emotional support and help of my family. Shoutout to them for offering their time even if my poor time-management caused the problem. Rebrick entry link for those interested: http://www.lego.com/...sortEntry=false Thanks for your time and good luck to everyone participating in the competition!

http://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=20482&idColor=115#T=C&C=12 This piece may be helpful. Combined with a half pin this should allow you to attach the armor to the shell. I'm not sure how wobbly this solution is however.

http://faberfiles.bl...scontinued.html A few days ago Faber posted a concept poster of Hero Factory during it's early stages of development. The description was later removed as Faber felt it was too emotional and that the development work should remain secret. However, thanks to a 4chan anon and a few board users, we have the full confirmed description which sheds some light on the IFB ending and the original concept of HF. "The last HF episode "Invasion from below" became the most watched piece of content on LEGO's website the year it came out. At the same time it marked the end of the short life of Hero Factory. It was criticised for a lot of different reasons but here are a few personal views on this battered factory." "Invasion from Below" was made on a very low budget by Advance and Ghost who made all the original Bionicle animations. The episode was a struggle because the storyline got changed dramatically during production. It was definitely ment to be continued because (of cause) the Queen wasn't gone and the case wasn't closed for HF. The voice actor changes was done for budget reasons because we didn't have budget for the the original voice actors." "Having worked on both Bionicle and HF from the very beginning I can tell you that the work that went into creating the HF universe was much more deep than the early foundation of Bionicle. We wanted to use all we had learned from Bionicle but make something that was really different from Bionicle yet as epic and big and therefore we created what we called a "realtime IP" meaning that this was not a legend, it was actually happening now somewhere in another galaxy. We wanted to mirror present day but in a tech build-up. In some way inspired by the humor of The Incredibles by Pixar." "The backstory of HF is extremely deep and epic and hold secrets that were never used. They are still in the huge concept bible that I keep. I hope to get to show them and do a extensive blogpost about HF and it's creation on this blog when the time is right. A last note is that Hero Factory was only meant as a location springboard into this vast story universe and the story was meant to get much more personal when the real truth about the factory was discovered. The idea of a factory that builds cocky heros made to specifications was actually a provocation to the whole legendary hero story we had told in Bionicle. The real hero would be found somewhere else...:) to be continued..." Here's the poster depicting a rather superhero-esque robot. Personally it gives me a Rachet and Clank vibe for some reason. Like a lot of other fans I viewed Hero Factory as a mountain of unused potential, and after reading what it *really* could have been those feelings have been amplified by 11. A story and universe that could have been even stronger than Bionicle combined with incredible creative freedom just really hurts as a lost opportunity. I have to wonder if a similar situation happened with Bionicle G2. Discuss what you think on what HF almost was.

A lot of my ideas on future contraction theme eventually became to be close to the ideas either to Slizers or Nexo Knights (Ultimates). Disregarding story, the play mechanics and style of those lines really hold a lot of the desirable aspects of a constraction theme. Slizers could have a high design variety while still being able to look like they belong together thanks to consistent design details like the head builds and disc arms. Even though it wasn't expanded upon, their disc throwing feature could have been more diverse by exploring on different firing methods or disc types/styles. Blaster even experimented with the idea of storing disks for purpose of functionality or just showing off the graphic. Thanks to its design, Slizers had a design language that gave it many possibilities and an expandable play gimmick. The Nexo Knights Ultimate line has some impressive designs, but it's real triumph is its shield power gimmick. It's collectible, it's interchangeable between figures with character neutral shield graphics and armor addons, it majorly affects/changes the appearance of the figure without sacrificing their individual look, it has a digital tie-in that combines physical and virtual play, and it has a lot of future possibilities. Although I skimmed it, story is a huge aspect that can make or break a theme. It needs to be complex and detailed enough to become interested and invested in, yet simple enough for accessibility. Characters and the world should feel alive and real while still being open to new additions or adventures. How it's presented is important too. Video games, books, contests, etc. There should be a fair balance of material that covers the linear story and interactive options for the background of the world. Whatever constraction theme comes in the future, I hope it takes a few cues from above and from what the fans have been recommending. -A highly variable design language that can give unique designs while keep a consistent look. -An expandable gimmick/feature that meaningfully affects the figure's look and play. -A story that balances depth and simplicity while also being interaction friendly. An example idea I had would be for there to be a line consiting of larger and smaller robots of all shapes and sizes trying to coexist in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The smaller ones could transform into a variety of things such as tools, armor, and weapons that the larger robots could equip on themselves. The larger bots would be the main characters while the smaller would be more like collectibles and companions. Each set would come with a scannable chip that would give the personality and powers for that set and also unlock it on an online game where you can customize your robots and explore the wasteland. There would be monsters and bad guys of course, but a main goal for the protagonists is to try to unravel the mystery of what happened to their world so they can fix it.

I feel that while the jaw pop-off trigger is a neat feature, it's execution leaves a lot to be desired. The Beast masks don't really look like masks and the placements of the jaw and mask makes the head look rather odd to say the least. On top of all that the lack of poseability, a feature G2 has shown to be able to blend with function, really makes the function more of a hinderance. 2015 heavily focused on masks and it showed in it's features. Popping off masks in battle, taking control with a skull spiders, prying off masks with the skeleton hook elements, corrupted masks the villains could actually wear, etc. The real focus of 2016 is Unity, which is why the jaw function and corrupted masks feel slightly out of place this time around. I think the designers focused on applying the unity feature with the Beasts they might have been better, or at least more fitting, sets.

http://i0.wp.com/far...e=480,640&ssl=1I wouldn't say those parts were that extremely unique, as they were just the 2015 Onua claws and Pohatu boomerangs colored silver. Sans the boomerangs, those parts at the time of the contest were available to NYCC build event. They were more unreleased pieces than prototypes really, and their effect on the MOC is so minimal I've never cared about it personally. Creatively using what you have is what I think contests should promote, and the only rules it needs are the ones that enable that.

We'll never know until the ending, but right now I'd have to say by a slight margin this summer is my least favorite wave so far. Aside from Lava Beast and Umarak I just can't get behind any of the sets. The Skeletons as a whole I feel were designed better. They had a cohesive undead look, their own texture styling, unique functions without much sacrifice (sans Scorpio), built apon the mask-stealing theme of 2015, and had more villain diversity. The Beasts sport improved builds and height, but suffer from their functions, poor custom limbs, gap issues, and the lack of play theme. Umarak the Destroyer is definitely an improvement in the the Titan department, but the rest of his cohorts drag the wave down.

Every year is an improvement, so yes in a way. It's not faultless but there is progress being made. The advancements in the building and functionality of this year are very welcome to me. However, other issues like proportioning, textures, clunky custom limbs, overusage of metallic and translucent colors, and the disturbing trend of one-connection-point shells are definitely some problems I think could stand to be improved in the future.